AS an upper riparian country, India has always used water of the Indus Water System as a weapon to damage Pakistan. Water experts of India and Pakistan call this Indian strategy as Indian Water Terrorism against Pakistan. During the dry weather India stops the water of all three Eastern Rivers (Sutlej, Ravi and Bias), leaving not even a drop of water for down flow into Pakistan which goes against the agreed formula of the Indus Water Treaty-1960. During the rainy season, India releases heavy water to flood Pakistan. Besides, India has been manipulating with the water of three western rivers (Indus, Jhelum and Chenab) whose water is exclusively meant for Pakistan as per Indus Water Treaty-1960. Indeed, India has built dozens of water storages, hydroelectric projects, water dams and water diversions in its occupied parts of Jammu and Kashmir. This Indian strategy deprives Pakistan of its exclusive rights over the water of three western rivers of the Indus Water System.
During the ongoing rainy season of 2023, India has released huge amounts of water in all eastern rivers which caused massive floods in all surrounding areas of these rivers. Due to extremely heavy flood in the River Sutlej, thousands of villages and millions of acres of land have been inundated when river banks burst. Flood in Sutlej River washed away levees and villages at several places, displacing more than 400,000 people. Apart from devastating millions of acres of standing crops, thousands of houses have been damaged and livestock drowned into water. Sutlej river has destroyed many areas in amounts of Bhawalpur and Bahawalnagar. India released huge amounts of water in Sutlej Riveron night 16/17 August and continued till end of August 2023. Similarly, India released huge water in Ravi and Chenab Rivers in July 2023, causing flooding all along the banks of these two rivers. India has been doing this water terrorism for decades now without any early warning and without any regard for the laid-down formula in the Indus Water Treat-1960.
Indeed, the flash floods in Pakistan have become an annual phenomenon which causes huge losses to human life, damage to property and infrastructure, besides causing destruction to crops and livestock at a massive scale. Indeed, Pakistan has a long history of the recurring floods and its consequent damages. The only escape, the successive governments present to alleviate the anxieties of the masses has been that ‘this year floods have been caused by unusually high and intense rain-falls whichhas never happened in the past’. After few high level visits to flood affected areas and questionable distribution of rations and death compensations, the matter is closed until another occurrence. Both, the government and the people forget the damages, caused by floods and more importantly, what essential actions to follow to avoid future losses as a result of flash floods. The flash flood-2022 has caused huge loses in almost all parts of Pakistan. Each year or after every two years, this process is repeated without any remedial measures.
In connection with flood control and to avoid the losses, there has been criminal negligence of successive governments in Pakistan. This includes repeated sufferance of the people, their properties and huge infrastructural losses each year in the low-lying areas of Pakistan. Referring the past disastrous effects of the floods; the monsoon flood of 2010 caused death of over 1700 people, affecting over 20% of the land area, displacing more than 20 million people and causing loss of billions of dollars by damaging standing crops, infrastructure, housing, agriculture and livestock all over Pakistan. The 2012 flooding affected 4.85 million people in Pakistan, damaging 640,000 houses and huge infrastructure. In August 2020, Karachi flooding killed at least 41 people. The floods were caused by record monsoon rains which were inadequately drained by poorly maintained drainage systems in the city. It is unfortunate that this city of over twenty million population is suffering because of political gains between PPP and MQM. For the last two decades, Karachi has been flooded many a time, causing heavy losses to life and property of the people but no measures taken to improve the drainage system of this mega city.
Unfortunately, no government has planned any mechanism to ensure effective measures to control the flood and its consequent losses. There is an immediate need to work on a mechanism for controlling the floods in Pakistan. The first and foremost requirement of this would be identification of areas for the construction of small and medium size water reservoirs and water storage dams. These water reservoirs and dams would serve four broad objectives; (a) stopping the rain water from flowing into low-lying areas which cause flood and destruction, (b) utilization of this stored water for agricultural purposes throughout the year through canal system, (c) water supply for drinking purposes to areas where there is a shortage of water and (d) generating cheap electricity to overcome the power shortage of the country since hydroelectricity is cheapest and cleanest mean of energy.
To counter the Indian water terrorism and to safeguard against monsoon rains, there is a need to formulate a flood control mechanism in Pakistan under an independent body which should be free of political, provincial, ethnic or any other influence. This body should undertake emergency survey of areas where water reservoirs and water storage dams can be built, keeping in view the above-mentioned considerations. This body should consist of experts of related fields who can undertake the responsibilities with determination and foresight. This body should be funded from the budget allocations of the Ministry of Environment and NDMA. The body should have a national mandate for safeguarding national interests and interests of the masses primarily with two major objectives: (i); survey and identify the areas where dams and reservoirs can be build, (ii); construction of facilities for water storage and three; ensuring water storage and its subsequent utilization as national asset of Pakistan.
— The writer is Professor of Politics and IR at International Islamic University, Islamabad.
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